1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to bariatric surgery, and more specifically, to a method for repairing or revising an anastomotic outlet surgically formed in a patient's stomach.
2. Description of Related Art
Bariatric surgical procedures are available for treating various bariatric conditions. In some instances, an anastomotic outlet is surgically formed in a portion of the stomach as part of the bariatric procedure. For example, a gastric bypass procedure may involve the surgical formation of an anastomotic outlet where a segment of a patient's intestine is attached to bypass a portion of a patient's stomach and/or intestine.
Gastric bypass surgery has shown to be effective in the treatment of obesity by helping to reduce the amount of food eaten by the patient and the amount of calories absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract of the patient. Examples of gastric bypass procedures may include Roux-En-Y gastric bypass (RNYGB), mini-gastric bypass (MGB) and biliopancreatic diversion (BPD).
In a RNYGB procedure, the stomach is surgically separated into a small upper pouch that remains connected to the esophageal inflow, and a lower portion that is functionally detached from the upper pouch but remains connected to the intestinal tract for purposes of secreting digestive juices. A portion of the small intestine (jejunum) is anastomosed to the upper pouch, by performing a gastrojejunostomy (GJ), to bypass the lower portion of the stomach and the duodenum. The small upper pouch limits the amount of food eaten by a patient by creating a feeling of fullness upon the consumption of a relatively small amount of food.
RNYGB has proven effective in achieving short-term weight loss. However, a patient may experience post gastric bypass recidivism, whereby the patient may relapse and regain weight after a period of time following the bypass procedure. Several factors believed to contribute to recidivism include widening of the gastrojejunostomy, enlargement of the gastric pouch, increased accommodation of the gastric pouch, increased emptying of the gastric pouch and subconscious behavioral adaptation that allows a patient to learn how to consume more food. Surgical options for treating recidivism include reducing the size of the gastric pouch, banding the gastric pouch, re-performing the GJ anastomosis, or relocating the bypass. Such revisions involve a major surgical procedure that may potentially carry significant risk.